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Kig-Yar (Earth-5875)
The kig-yar (Latin Perosus latrunculus, meaning "hateful bandit"), are a sapient species of bird-like reptiles. Native to the moon Eayn, the kig-yar were the third species to be inducted into the Covenant, with their conversion occurring in 122 BCE. Unlike the other species of the Covenant, however, the kig-yar served the hegemony not out of faith in the Path, but because of money and payment, effectively acting as mercenaries and privateers instead of zealous warriors. They served in the hegemony until its dissolution in late 2552, and afterwards, majority resorted to piracy, while some served in mercenary positions at Covenant splinter groups. The kig-yar possesses three different races: ruuhtians, ibie'shans, and t'vaoans, known to humans as Jackals, Geckos, and Skirmishers, respectively. In combat, kig-yar acted as snipers, scouts and trackers duo to their advanced senses of smell, hearing, and sight. History The Ark and reseeding During the Forerunner-Xenomorph War, the Librarian and her Lifeworkers visited Eayn as a part of the Conservation Measure to save kig-yar specimens and index them in the Ark so they could survive the activation of the Halo Array. After the rings were lighted and all life extinct, the kig-yar, alongside all remaining living species in the galaxy, were returned to their homeworld through keyships, where they started rebuilding their culture and civilization. Development of civilization .]] The early kig-yar civilizations saw their society divided between clans that dwelled across Eayn's oceans and skies as pirates, pillaging and raiding territories belonging to enemy clans. Because of an ancient divide between continents, the kig-yar developed with two distinct races - the ruuthians and the ibie'shans. Kig-Yar also experienced a gladiatorial era not much different than that of humans, where they held inter-clan combats and competitions at Ruuth, Eayn's biggest continent. The clans eventually united, and together were able to form a government that bolstered their technology, enabling them to become space-faring and achieve FTL travel. After establishing colonies on planetoids and asteroids through Chu'ot, such as T'vao, which become home to the t'vaoans, that eventually developed into their own race. Some kig-yar decided to return to their ancient ways of life, turning into pirates and raiders by kidnapping and pillaging merchant vessels. The increasing piracy led the planetary government's militia of Eayn to recruit commandos from sectarian societies of Chu'ot's asteroids to combat the criminals. Ruthlessly, they were able to do so, which resulted in numerous conflicts. However, with the arrival of the Covenant war machine in 122 BCE, the pirates and the militia joined their forces in order to banish the alien invaders. Covenant , leading a group of enslaved unggoy to enter ''High Charity''.]] The first Covenant ships to arrive in the Y'Deio system consisted of small exploratory ships, which were ruthlessly attacked by kig-yar mercenaries and pirates, which led to a massive conflict between the Covenant and these factions. Later, the factions were supported by Eayn militias, and though the Covenant had a much bigger strength and size, they were toyed by the kig-yar, who used the Y'Deio system for tactical maneuvers. The gargantuan Covenant ships discovered it was almost impossible to navigate through Y'Deio's abnormal asteroid belts, and observed as the kig-yar used these asteroids for hiding and surprise bombing attacks. The war that resulted between the Covenant and the kig-yar led to a series of redoubts and sieges across Eayn, T'vao, and the asteroids they had settled in. The kig-yar eventually realized it was highly unlikely they could win the war, and that the continuous fighting could destroy them all. Upon realizing the opportunities for profit and expansion of their trade, the kig-yar proposed a meeting the Covenant High Council on High Charity, where they proposed serving in the Covenant as privateers, an excuse for them to continue with their mercenary lifestyle, making them the only species to willingly join the Covenant, and not out of faith. infusion supply.]] With the kig-yar's inclusion in the Covenant, all of their previous colonies, including their homeworld, Eayn, were annexed into the empire. In the Covenant, the kig-yar acted as snipers, scouts and trackers duo to their advanced senses of smell, hearing, and sight, and much like the mgalekgolo and huragok, they were considered beneath the san'shyuum and the sangheili, which led to many kig-yar attempt to rise in their position whatever the cost. This led to serious issues in 1112, with the discovery of the unggoy on Balaho, another species that were enslaved into the Covenant. Both shared low ranks, but the kig-yar despised the unggoy, deeming them a "lesser race". Their rivalry came to a reaching point in 1262: the growing unggoy population in High Charity forced many kig-yar to leave their homes, leading to a widespread stress in females that caused large infant mortality during their incubation. A group of kig-yar sought vengeance, poisoning the infusion, narcotics used by the unggoy, which caused the deaths of many unggoy. Because of the unggoy's even lower status than that of the kig-yar, the High Council chose to not investigate the act, preferring to accept the deaths of many unggoy rather than upsetting the kig-yar, which culminated into the Unggoy Rebellion. The unggoy, now fully-provoked, rose up against the Covenant and started attacking and killing kig-yar and all other species of the Covenant, causing widespread deaths in High Charity. The sangheili, kig-yar, mgalekgolo, and huragok were unable to stop the rebellion, leading the Hierarchs to appoint an Arbiter, who partially glassed Balaho and killed millions, leading to the unggoy's surrender. First Contact War The ''Minor Trangression'', a Covenant ''ACD''-class missionary ship crewed exclusively by kig-yar mercenaries, was the first to make contact with humanity after raiding a freighter that left Shanxi. This led to a series of events that escalated into a massive battle on Shanxi and almost immediately, the First Contact War. The High Council ordered the kig-yar privateers under their pockets to continue patrolling space in the search of new human-controlled planets, and as such, the kig-yar were responsible for the discovery of multiple human colonies during the war, such as Madrigal, which they promptly informed to their respective fleets. alongside a sangheili Minor during the Battle of Mombasa.]] With the outbreak of the First Contact War, the initial human encounters with kig-yar warriors were poorly documented, and often incredibly brief whenever in the presence of kig-yar Snipers. Studies by scientists of the Office of Naval Intelligence and the UNSC were able to study the species' biology, while there were many documentations and evidence of kig-yar pirates raiding human territories on their own, as opposed to under the banner of the Covenant. In 2535, a searching party of kig-yar led by Reth discovered an asteroid community in the 23 Librae system, known as the Rubble, where many human Insurrectionists and civilians lived following the loss of Madrigal. The Rubble's community leader, Peter Bonifacio, contacted the kig-yar, and the two sides agreed to trade with each other: the kig-yar would give weapons of the Covenant to the humans, while the humans would give Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engines to the kig-yar. The Rubble's inhabitants believed these kig-yar to be rebels, but in secrecy, they were part of a crew personally sent by the Prophet of Truth in secret, in order to map UNSC space and locate the human homeworld, Earth, so the species could finally be exterminated during the war. Reth had a secret army of unggoy he planned to use against the Rubble. The plan was eventually a failure duo to the interference of sangheili warriors sent by the Prophet of Regret to investigate the Covenant weapons sold to the humans, deeming the kig-yar under Reth as heretics. During the Great Schism, most kig-yar sided with the jiralhanae and san'shyuum on their genocide against the sangheili. The Minister of Discovery, however, correctly guessed the kig-yar would follow whichever side that would provide them with profit and goods. Some kig-yar remained at the side of their sangheili commanders out of long respect, while others protested alongside unggoy and yanme'e at the streets of High Charity. Post-First Contact War operating on Ven III.]] Following the fall of the Covenant and subsequently the end of the First Contact War, most kig-yar returned to piracy, trade, or became mercenaries and privateers. Unlike the other species of the Covenant, the kig-yar were those who got the most benefits, thriving with new opportunities, such as open trade with humans, which allowed their overall population in Y'Deio and across the galaxy to remain stable and manageable growth. They did not only trade with humans, but the former Covenant species and their long time uneasy allies, both in open space and occupied colonies, such as Venezia, taking advantage of the collapse of the Covenant to loot and salvage lost material, weapons, installations and ships. Some kig-yar were hired as mercenaries by conservative sangheili states on Sanghelios and other sangheili colonies, bent on annihilating san'shyuum, jiralhanae, and humans, while others stood at the side of the many Covenant splinter factions, such as the Enclave or the Blood Pact, either out of money or real faith. Many pirate and raider factions, such as the Blue Suns, were established on desolated planets, such as was the case with Ven III. The Shipmistress Chol Von attempted to gather many loyal forces to create a military government on Eayn and the Y'Deio system from outsiders, but she was stricken with unpopularity, with opponents seeing her as too ambitious and delusional. Biology Anatomy and physiology kig-yar neural network as displayed on ''Argent Moon''.]] Kig-Yar average their height from 6' 2" (190 cms) to 6' 8" (210 cms), while they average their weight in 195 lbs (88 kgs) and 206 lbs (93 kgs). They possess many of the same traits to that of Earth's avians and reptiles, as well as the exhibition of many features common to species that evolved in environments with low-gravity. Their legs are reverse-jointed, muscular and sinewy, similar to that of birds. Kig-Yar are omnivorous, although they have been mistakenly tough to be carnivorous by human scientists in the past. Their beaks are sharped, and lined with strong, razor-sharp teeth, and their hands are tri-digit, each finger featuring sharp talons. Their eyes are covered and protected by nictitating membranes, which horizontally sweep across their eyes. Kig-Yar display cannibalistic tendencies even in present-day, and starved kig-yar are infamously known to eat the flesh of fallen allies and enemies. Some sangheili and jiralhanae warriors eliminated criminals by giving them to be eaten alive by kig-yar convicts. The species have an extraordinary sense of sight, smell, and hearing, which was used by the Covenant, placing them in scout and sniper positions within the armada, something which was complemented their tremendous agility and ability to jump and roll swiftly during firefights: such abilities are the most pronounced among t'vaoans, which can leap at much greater distances. Their blood is bright purple, much like that of the sangheili. kig-yar drawn by Dr. Catherine Halsey on her diary.]] Kig-Yar infants and adolescents are known as chicks, and are covered in thick, brown feathers that molts, slowly revealing their scales and plumage with their growth. Male kig-yar have spiny quills on the back of their heads and elbows, whose colors vary depending on their mood and race - while ruuhtians and ibie'shans have blue, red, or brown coloration, t'vaoans have either red or black feathers. Ruuhtian and ibie'shan females lack quills, and instead they possess plates that fill their foreheads and the rear of their heads, serving as a protection during a female courtship. During sex, a male kig-yar more than often chew, bite, and tear the back of a female's head, arms, and neck. Not much difference is observed between the two genders aside from these, and as such, they were mostly indistinguishable for humans in the battlefield during the First Contact War, as the kig-yar were the only species to allow females in their ranks. They typically height 5 to 6 feet, and so are the same size of a normal human. Genetic diversity and one ruuhtian kig-yar attacking human civilians on Minab.]] The kig-yar are unique even among the many species of the Covenant, possessing a vast genetic diversity with three morphologically distinct races - the avian-like ruuhtians from Ruuht, known to humans as "Jackals", the saurian-like and smaller ibie'shans from Ibie'sh, known to humans as "Geckos", and the even more avian-like and robust t'vaoans from T'vao. Human xenobiologists believe these variations are a result of diverging evolutionary pressures that came with the incredibly varied environments, ecosystems, and phenomena found on Eayn and the Y'Deio system. The three races can still intercourse and reproduce with the others without any problem, and their offspring are born with no cognitive differences. Ruuhtian Ruuhtians, from the supercontinent Ruuht, are the most commonly seen kig-yar race, having either tan, brown, or sallow skin tones, with typically purple, green, or yellow eyes. Males possess quills at their heads and forearms, while females possess plates at their foreheads. They have beak-like snouts and big, bulbous eyes. Ibie'shan Ibie'shans, from the volcanic supercontinent Ibie'sh, are the second most commonly seen kig-yar race, displaying the species' most "primal" characteristics and thus sharing a closer link to their common ancestors. Their heads are massive, reptilian and muscular in appearance, possessing short snouts and underbites. Males possess quills at their heads and forearms, while females possess plates at their foreheads. T'vaoans T'vaoans, from the asteroid colony T'vao, are the least seen kig-yar race, having darker skin, with a more squared head and smaller, yellow eyes. They are much taller than their other kig-yar, and have a much more avian appearance than the other two. They display real feathers at the top of their heads and arms, but possesses no quills. Culture , led by the pirate-king Krith.]] Kig-Yar are generally considered to be driven only by greed and personal gains. The kig-yar of ancient were divided into numerous intercine clans on Eayn, which competed for resources and survival against one another in gladiatorial competitions and death matches in major cities and settlements across the moon, and later, the Y'Deio system. After they were inducted into the Covenant, these clans were deemed obsolete and old by the kig-yar, although they continued to live and thrive under their pirate and clan lifestyles, often claiming the ancient territory that belonged to their ancestors in the past. Myur, a city on T'vao, became partially claimed by Chol Von and her clan. Sometimes, the kig-yar clans work together to achieve a bigger goal and defend one another, unless they dislike each other. The clans are based on clan homes, and are led by clan mothers, who teach their chicks how to fight and cook. Piracy is an important part of kig-yar society, history, and culture, having once spreading through the seas of Eayn and later space after the kig-yar achieved FTL travel and thus Tier 4 technology. However, many legitimate organizations and business are found through kig-yar space and societies. Piracy and pirates were seen as something good and even epic, with many chicks desiring such a life when they grew up, as piracy represented a freedom from oppressive governments, something that became much more accentuated during the kig-yar's servitude of the Covenant. Unlike all other Covenant species (with the exception of the huragok), the kig-yar did not truly adhere to the Path and the Great Journey, serving the Covenant entirely out of the money and treasures the hegemony could provide them, and among themselves, kig-yar claimed the Journey were "tales for children" and "deluded people". As such, they had loose real alliances, contacting other kig-yar groups to steal Covenant supplies and resources when they weren't being tracked. The other species of the Covenant, particularly the san'shyuum, the sangheili, and the jiralhanae, are very distrustful of the kig-yar, considering them all to be pirates, opportunists and traitors. Social relations ship.]] Kig-Yar society is matriarchal, with males being chosen by their females to live at their side. The ancient kig-yar society were described as a series of oppressive matriarchies. The governance of Eayn eventually evolved enough to the point of equally treating both genders and sexes with the same amount of respect and rights, although females still remain in most government and power positions. Before the kig-yar were inducted into the Covenant, only female kig-yar could settle breeding rights, territorial disputes, clan organization, territory, and exertion of control over most resources and assets. During the Covenant and after its fall, the matriarchal societies continued to live on, with young male kig-yar being considered to be lower-lived compared to young females. Because females can chose their mates, they jump from one to another at any given time, while males stay on their family's home to take care of their chicks until they are old enough to be selected by other females. The kig-yar are very xenophobic, and considered themselves to be above other species, which they considered "lesser races", mainly the unggoy, while each kig-yar race consider themselves superior to one another. Despite this, kig-yar are observed to coexist in relative peace with humans, seeing them as a similar species moved not by religion, but by money, in the form of the capitalist system. These situation include the Rubble, with cooperation between the forces led by Reth alongside the humans on Metisette, kig-yar privateers and miners helping Office of Naval Operations on New Llanelli, and kig-yar criminals with humans on both Karava and Venezia. After the Prophet of Truth ordered Reth and his warriors to kill all humans in the Rubble, many of them, including Reth, regretted the orders, and many refused to fight, only to be killed by Covenant loyalists. Role within the Covenant and a t'vaoan, and an unggoy fighting against SPARTAN-IIIs during Operation PROMETHEUS.]] Differently from the other Covenant species, the kig-yar were not followers of the Path, serving the Covenant merely out of money and raw lust for peril. However, they held deep loyalty to their own clans and matriarchs, and the Great Journey and wars in the name of the Covenant were considered a "secondary objective". Because they served the Covenant for millennia, however, many kig-yar came to accept the Path as true and revere the forerunners as gods, or simply consider it a part of their lives. Although they shared a low status like most species in the Covenant, they were unique in that they served independently as essentially mercenaries and paid henchmen for the Covenant, and most kig-yar saw their service to the Covenant as merely a business instead of a religious matter. Many kig-yar established black markets in ''High Charity'' and other Covenant worlds, and even though the Hierarchs of it, they turned a blind eye, opting to focus on more serious matter. As such, when the Covenant fell and the First Contact War ended, the kig-yar were the only species motly unaffected by the drastic shift in the status quo, having preserved their entire culture and philosophies. In battles for the Covenant, kig-yar acted as scouts, snipers, marksmen, and overseers, being used for assassination and infiltration in enemy territory. The privateers of the High Council led their own ''ACD''-class missionary ships. They also employed their own ships instead of those made by the Covenant for these special assignments. Government Eayn, T'vao and the other kig-yar colonies live in a post-industrial capitalist system, with a total population of two billion, while Eayn has most of the population, comprising 968 million individuals. Their government system is described as an ochlocracy, meaning a system governed by mob, or intimidation and coercion of authorities. However, the kig-yar governments are ineffective and ignored by the hordes of criminals found among their numbers. Before their contact and conversion with the Covenant, each kig-yar colony was loosely self-governed, and because of this, these colonies developed economical systems on the gray market. Before the Covenant, Eayn had its own militia, which proved incredibly efficient into combating the pirates. Language The main kig-yar language is known as Uo'aXy'an. To humans and the other species of the Covenant, Uo'aXy'an consists of a series of hisses, growls, screeches, snarls, and squawks. Once they joined the Covenant, the kig-yar were taught Digom, the main language of the sangheili, which served as the lingua franca of the Covenant. Kig-Yar can also speak English, although very rispidly duo to their entirely different physiological build-up. Homeworld and colonies Eayn is the homeworld of the kig-yar, and the sole natural satellite of the gas giant Chu'ot. It has a single, equatorial ocean, with many volcanic events and no glaciation. One-third of the kig-yar who live in the Y'Deio system consider Eayn their home, as most of the species started to live on the system's many asteroids. The kig-yar colonies consist of T'vao, the homeworld of the t'vaoans, Muloqt, Kaelarot, Valyanop, and Dal'koth. Category:Earth-5875 Category:Sapient species of Earth-5875 Category:Species of Earth-5875 Category:Kig-Yar of Earth-5875 Category:Host species (Earth-5875) Category:Species Category:Races Category:Created by Draft227 Category:Covenant species (Earth-5875) Category:Reptiles (Earth-5875)